Hinrich R. Martens joined the faculty of the University at Buffalo's Department of Mechanical and Electrical Engineering in 1962 as an assistant professor. He was promoted to associate professor in 1965 and professor in 1970. Martens earned both a B.S. (1957) and M.S. (1959) in Mechanical Engineering from the University of Rochester, and a Ph.D. in Systems Science (1962) from Michigan State University. He was named director of University Computing Services in 1981 and Associate Vice President for Computing and Information Technology in 1985, a position he would hold until his retirement in 2000.